FLYERS: Flyers go up in flames, loss to Devils

NEWARK — Make it six straight games in which the Devils have frustrated the Flyers, but their 5-3 loss Friday night at Prudential Center wasn’t the most troubling aspect of the night.

David Clarkson’s tip-in goal midway through the third period turned the tide New Jersey’s way, and Steve Bernier’s empty-netter finished it off in the waning minutes, leaving the Flyers (6-8-1) to contemplate blowing a two-goal lead and allowing the Devils (9-2-3) to win another four-point game between the Atlantic Division rivals. It extends New Jersey’s streak over the Flyers to six games, including four straight last spring in the Eastern Conference semifinals. While that’s hard enough to take, losing Kimmo Timonen in the game looms as something much worse.

Timonen, the Flyers’ veteran defensive leader, did not come out for the third period. Preliminarily, he was diagnosed with a lower-body injury.

The Flyers began the first two periods exactly the way it’s diagrammed in dunce class during practice - by giving up a goal in the first minute.

It took 40 seconds into the first before Travis Zajac reintroduced himself to the Flyers on the scoreboard. That came courtesy of an overly aggressive Wayne Simmonds turnover in the offensive zone, and a great set-up pass by Ilya Kovalchuk to help Zajac beat a slow Ilya Bryzgalov to the punch for 1-0. It was Zajac’s first goal since Jan. 22 ... also here against the Flyers.

To start the second it was another Devils fast break, this one ignited by a patented Marty Brodeur outlet pass. That again went to Kovalchuk, who set up new and old Devil Alexei Ponikarovsky for a second Devils goal.

In between, however, the Flyers were very active. It wasn’t long after that opening Zajac goal that the Flyers started taking it to a surprisingly disorganized New Jersey group. And in the space of 2:36 of that first period, the Flyers scored three times.

First Simmonds made up for his turnover with a nice turnaround backhander in the slot at 9:27 for 1-1. The Flyers took the lead at 11:15 when a long Mike Knuble shot deflected off New Jersey’s Stephen Gionta and slipped past Brodeur’s glove. Then 48 seconds later - and after coach Peter DeBoer had called his team to the bench for a mass chewout - Claude Giroux teed one up for Matt Read, whose one-timer made a 3-1 Flyers lead.

“There were a couple of turnovers there,” Read said. “One puck bounced to G and I was in the slot. G passed the puck to me and I closed my eyes and swung as hard as I could.”

Whatever works. But the Devils didn’t stay disorganized for long.

The got within one on Ponikarovsky’s goal just 16 seconds into the second. They carried the play for large chunks of that period, and finally got it even when Kovalchuk yet again created an opportunity off a mistake. This time it was off a thoughtless clear attempt by Kimmo Timonen that Kovy intercepted and shoveled over to Patrik Elias, who drilled a shot home at 15:40 for 3-3. It went down as career point 799 for Kovalchuk.

The teams played evenly in the third period until the Devils gained possession behind the Flyers net thanks to a referee getting in the way of a Flyers pass. The puck went down the other end and stayed there, and finally David Clarkson tipped home an Adam Larsson shot for 4-3.